CVS Buys Health Insurance Company for $69 Billion

The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2018.

CVS Health, headquartered in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, announced on Sunday that it plans to buy the health insurance company Aetna for $69 billion. According to a press release from the company, the merger will lead to more integrated data and analytics and more assistance to treat chronic diseases like diabetes. CVS is the largest pharmacy health care provider in the U.S., with more than 9,700 retail locations in 49 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Brazil and more than 250,000 employees. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2018. It must be approved by CVS Health and Aetna shareholders and receive regulatory approval.